James C. Collins

James C. Collins (born 1958) is an American researcher, author, speaker and consultant focused on business management and company sustainability and growth.

Collins received a BS in Mathematical Sciences at Stanford University, graduating in 1980.

Collins was granted honorary doctoral degrees from the University of Colorado and the Peter F. Drucker Graduate School of Management at Claremont Graduate University.

Following graduation, Collins spent 18 months in McKinsey & Co.'s San Francisco office. He was exposed to what may have been an influential project for him – two partners at McKinsey, Tom Peters and Robert Waterman, were running a McKinsey research project that later became the best-seller In Search of Excellence.

After his time at McKinsey, he returned to study at Stanford, graduating with an MBA from the Stanford Graduate School of Business in 1983. He then worked as a product manager for Hewlett-Packard for 18 months.

Collins began his research and teaching career on the faculty of Stanford University's Graduate School of Business in 1988. In 1992, he received the Distinguished Teaching Award.

He published his first book, Beyond Entrepreneurship: Turning Your Business into an Enduring Great Company co-authored with William C. Lazier, in 1992.

He published his first best-seller Built To Last, co-authored with Jerry Porras, in 1994.

Collins is married to former triathlete and 1985 Ironman World Championship winner, Joanne Ernst.

1992: Beyond Entrepreneurship: Turning Your Business into an Enduring Great Company by James C. Collins and William C. Lazier

1994: Built to Last: Successful Habits of Visionary Companies by James C. Collins and Jerry I. Porras

2001: Good to Great: Why Some Companies Make the Leap … And Others Don’t by James C. Collins

2005: Good to Great and the Social Sectors by James C. Collins

2009: How the Mighty Fall: And Why Some Companies Never Give In by James C. Collins